‘We do this for others’: Edmonds, Marysville hold protests

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, January 20, 2026

EDMONDS — About 250 protesters gathered at the Edmonds Ferry Terminal on Tuesday on the one-year anniversary of President Trump’s second term.

In Marysville, about 40 students at Marysville’s Legacy High School walked out of class on Tuesday to protest Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents’ presence in the area. The walkout happened one week after Everett High School students staged a similar walkout on Jan 13.

The “Signs of Fascism” protest in Edmonds was organized by South Snohomish County Indivisible. Holding signs such as “Freeze ICE” and “Defend democracy,” attendees waved at cars getting on and off the Edmonds-Kingston ferry.

Many attendees were concerned about the Trump administration’s increase in immigration enforcement. Since Trump took office last year, the federal government has ramped up deportation efforts, including securing billions in funding for new immigration agents and detention spaces.

“I’m against the cruelty and brutality, the tactics of ICE, and the randomness and haste,” attendee Shelly Ehni said. “I think we all want some immigration control in our country, but there are ways to do that kindly and humanely.”

On Jan. 8, a University of Washington Center for Human Rights report found that federal immigration authorities had accessed state license plate data to assist with immigration arrests. One of the nine cases was in Edmonds. According to the report, the person arrested in Edmonds did not have a criminal record.

“People are becoming more aware,” said Sharon Otness, a co-founder of South Snohomish County Indivisible. “At first, it seemed like ICE would never hit sleepy little Edmonds, but it is.”

The protest also comes after the shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis, who was killed by a federal immigration agent earlier this month. Her death has sparked nationwide protests, including a walkout at Everett High School last week.

“We need to be out here supporting others who can’t leave work or are afraid, or other states that are being threatened like Minnesota,” Edmonds resident Nora Carlson said. “We do this for others.”

South Snohomish County Indivisible holds protests every month. Tuesday’s crowd was one of the larger ones they’ve seen, Otness said.

“My Christian faith called me to do this today,” Ehni said. “Jesus asked us to stand with the poor and the oppressed and stand up for justice.”

Edmonds-Kingston ferry riders saw protests on both sides of the sound Tuesday as activists in Kingston held a similar protest.

“It’s so transparent what’s happening, and it’s not going to stop until we do something,” Edmonds resident Jack Stephens said. “Everybody should be here because the country is precious and there’s nothing that’s precious that isn’t worth fighting for.”

In Marysville, the 40 students — almost a third of the 140-student body — left class at 2 p.m. Tuesday and stood in front of the school, holding signs and chanting slogans to passing vehicles.

Maxamillion Christofferson, a senior at the school, organized the walkout because his friends are “fearing for their lives,” he said during the rally.

“Me and my friends are consistently checking for ICE vehicles around the area just because they’ve been so prevalent. It’s terrifying,” he said. “So many people at my school are affected by this, and people in my area are affected by this, and so I just want to try and do something instead of sitting around and looking on the internet and scrolling around in fear.”

Christofferson and his friends were inspired by the Everett High School student walkout, he said.

“I told my friends about it, and my friends — they were like, ‘Max, we should do this at our school.’ And I was like, ‘You know what? Heck yeah,’” he said. “So I told people — word of mouth — I posted on my Instagram, I texted people, I told my grandparents, and they helped me set everything up.”

Student Support Advocate Jessica Flores supervised the event. She was proud the students had taken the initiative, she said in an interview.

“We’re a really small school. The fact that they got this many kids together is impressive,” she said.

Jenna Peterson: 425-339-3486; jenna.peterson@heraldnet.com; X: @jennarpetersonn.

Taylor Scott Richmond: 425-339-3046; taylor.richmond@heraldnet.com; X: @BTayOkay.